Dozens of civilians, including elderly people and retired security officers, were arrested last week in Zalingei during a campaign by the Rapid Support Forces, with detainees held in harsh conditions at the city’s main prison, local sources told Darfur24.
An eyewitness told Darfur24 that RSF units, traveling in four-wheel-drive combat vehicles, raided several homes across the city and arrested civilians and former security personnel. The arrests were carried out under allegations of belonging to the Sudanese army and the Joint Force, while others were accused of affiliation with the former National Congress Party and the Islamic Movement.
According to the witness, the campaign targeted more than 30 people, including retired officers and elderly individuals. Those detained were transferred to the main prison in the city center, where they are being held under what he described as “extremely difficult” humanitarian conditions.
Mansour Mahmoud, a relative of one of the detainees, told Darfur24 that his relative, Abdel Nasser Ali, a former police officer, was arrested from his home in the Al-Hamidiya neighborhood. He was accused of collaborating with the Sudanese army and was asked to pay three million Sudanese pounds. In addition, he was reportedly forced to leave the city and barred from remaining there following his release.
Mahmoud added that the family has launched a fundraising effort to collect the demanded amount.
In a related incident, another source said his relative, Saif al-Din Musa, a former officer in the Judicial Police Service and a resident of the “Five Minutes” neighborhood, was arrested on the same charge. His fate remains unknown, despite repeated attempts by the family to contact RSF leadership without receiving any information.
Darfur24 was unable to obtain additional names of detainees or independently verify their exact number at the time of publication.